Author: Moses Nyambalo Phiri

  • PHIM and WHO Strengthen National One Health Observatory for Enhanced Public Health Monitoring.

    PHIM and WHO Strengthen National One Health Observatory for Enhanced Public Health Monitoring.

    One Health Observatory Worksop.

    Salima, Malawi June-2025..
    by
    Moses Nyambalo Phiri in collaboration with Dr. Bernard Mvula, Hamdan Saidi and Settie Kanyanda.

    PHIM has conducted its National One Health Observatory (NOHO) Workshop, a significant step towards strengthened its public health infrastructure.This workshop held at Sigelege, Salima, that brought together approx 72 officers across different directorates and programs including Interagency coordination office situated under the Office of the President and Cabinet, and was technically and financially supported by WHO.

    The NOHO integrates data from key sectors including health, agriculture, water, and the environment. This multi-sectoral approach aligns with the national One Health strategy, aiming to improve evidence-based decision-making, as indicated by a 2019 study by Vesterinen Id et al.

    Key objectives included strengthening capacity for generating actionable knowledge products (e.g., policy briefs, infographics, blogs), validating national indicator data, identifying gaps, proposing new indicators, and fostering collaboration in data governance and dissemination. A national roadmap for sustained observatory use was
    also developed. The NOHO holds significant implications for Malawi as it is expected to increase the country’s global visibility through centralized, quality data for policymaking.

    Furthermore, it will facilitate indicator harmonization, reinforce multisectoral collaboration via the One Health Approach, and improve data quality and dissemination. This initiative also aligns Malawi’s systems with the WHO-supported African Health Observatory framework, enabling effective tracking of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) progress.

    In his opening remarks, Mr. Joseph Bitilinyu Bango, Deputy Director rensiponsible for PHL, PHIM emphasized “This initiative is set to transform how Malawi gathers, analyzes, and utilizes health-related data, leading to more informed policy decisions and a healthier future for its citizens.”

  • Public Health Institute of Malawi Hosts One-Health Meeting, Eyes National Strategy for Coordinated Health Action.

    Public Health Institute of Malawi Hosts One-Health Meeting, Eyes National Strategy for Coordinated Health Action.

    One Health Stakeholder Meeting

    Ufulu Gardens, Lilongwe, Malawi June-2025..
    by
    Moses Nyambalo Phiri in collaboration with Mark Mwalabu, and Settie Kanyanda.

    The One Health Stakeholders Meeting, held at Ufulu Gardens in Lilongwe on June 26, 2025, brought together key players from Malawi’s public health, animal health, and environmental sectors. Organized by the Public Health Institute of Malawi (PHIM) in collaboration with the Department of Animal Health and Livestock Development (DAHLD) and the Environmental Affairs Department (EAD), the meeting aimed to strengthen collaborative approaches under the One Health framework, align ongoing and planned activities, and improve coordination and cross-sectoral efforts.

    Representatives from various vital government bodies, including the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Climate Change, the Department of Disaster Affairs, the Malawi Police Service, the Malawi Defence Force, and the Office of the President and Cabinet, were in attendance. The Airport Commandant of Kamuzu International Airport’s Port Health Services also participated.

    Dr. Wilfred Chalamira Nkhoma from the Office of the President and Cabinet (OPC) officially opened the meeting. He stressed the critical need for strategic and coordinated efforts within a One Health approach to ensure its success.

    He particularly emphasized the critical need to operationalize One Health and establish structured, periodic meetings to review progress and foster accountability. He said “A significant proposal was the in the development of a national One Health strategy or policy with clear implementation and accountability plans for each sector” . He called for an Accountability and Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E) framework to track sectoral contributions and progress and suggested an independent committee to develop Scorecard to evaluate sector performance.

    “…Malawi needs to strategically coordinate efforts in One Health approach to achieve overall improved health of our nation….”

    Dr. Wilfred Chalamira Nkhoma – OPC.

    Several organizations presented their contributions and insights:

    The Pandemic Fund announced that Malawi had a $2.7 million share in the 2024 regional project focusing on disease surveillance and workforce response to climate-driven disease outbreaks. As of current, a multi-country proposal (RAPID-AI) for 2025 and a single-country proposal for strengthening pandemic preparedness through One Health approach are pending approval.

    Health Informaticts Malawi advocated for health informatics and data governance through training, advocacy, and standardization, emphasizing that “Every dataset should generate a decision.” while the WHO shared that they have been supporting for national One Health policies and AMR-related strategies, noting fragmentation and stressing the need for clear sectoral responsibilities and a skilled workforce.

    The AMR National Coordinating Committee (ANCC) provided an update on the AMR National Action Plan (2023–2030), with plans to establish a national OH AMR data warehouse, and there was also notion that research on Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) in poultry had identifying gaps in research and challenges related to data quality.

    HISP Malawi / University of Malawi showcased climate-health initiatives, including the DHIS2 Climate App (CHAP) and a climate data portal, emphasizing interoperability, whereas Malawi Liverpool Wellcome Trust Focused on AMR research, particularly in Salmonella and E. coli, with pilot One Health research on AMU and AMR in hospitals.

    Key questions arose regarding the underrepresentation of environmental data in OH strategies and how to promote cross-use-case infrastructure and data interoperability with systems like NAMIS and OHSP. A follow-up call with GIZ and HISP was recommended to align integration efforts.

    Mirna Hussein, ECSA and Dr. Chikonzero, GIZ

    The meeting, co-funded by GIZ and the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (NIPH), the collective commitment to a unified approach to public health in Malawi.

  • One Health Frontline Epidemiology Training Programme (FETP) Curriculum TOT).

    One Health Frontline Epidemiology Training Programme (FETP) Curriculum TOT).

    FETP – One Health TOT.

    Johannesburg, South Africa – June 19th, 2025.
    by
    Moses Nyambalo Phiri in collaboration with Happy Abraham Manda and Settie Kanyanda.

    Eight Southern African countries recently convened in Johannesburg for a critical One Health Field Epidemiology Training Program (FETP) Curriculum Trainer of Trainers (TOT) workshop. Organized by the African Epidemiology Network (AFENET), the five-day intensive, held from June 2nd to 6th, 2025, aimed to equip mentors with an updated curriculum to enhance regional collaboration in detecting, investigating, and responding to public health threats. The workshop brought together representatives from human, animal, and environmental health sectors across South Africa, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique. The primary objective was to update mentors on the new “One Health” FETP curriculum contents and identify gaps to improve its implementation across the continent. This initiative is expected to significantly bolster collaboration in tackling disease outbreaks and other public health challenges by strengthening the integrated “One Health” concept.

    FETP IN MALAWI

    Malawi, a nation that has been implementing FETP since April 2016 with support from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the International Training and Education Center for Health (I-TECH), sent a five-person team to the workshop. The delegation included Mrs. Flora Tembo and Mr. Happy Manda from the Public Health Institute of Malawi (PHIM), Dr. Wamaka Msopole from Mzimba North District Health Office, Miss Maria Luwani from the Environmental Affairs Department, and Mr. Collins Chioko from the Veterinary Department. Mrs. Grace Funsani, Chief Epidemiologist coordinating FETP in Malawi, highlighted the program’s success in building sustainable capacity for timely detection and response to health threats.

    Discussions during the training underscored the challenges in implementing the “One Health” concept in many participating countries. Participants emphasized that improved collaboration among sectors, particularly in data sharing and outbreak response, is crucial. Suggestions included cross-sectional visits to learn about surveillance practices in other sectors and sharing experiences.

    “…Our program has successfully built a sustainable capacity for the timely detection and response to health threats….”

    The Malawian team, in particular, brainstormed actionable strategies for integrating the “One Health” approach more deeply within their FETP. Their suggestions included engaging and sensitizing environmental sectors on the FETP-One Health program, recruiting trainees from the environmental sector, and incorporating case studies from environmental events into the curriculum. They also advocated for cross-sectional surveillance visits, joint outbreak investigations as field work, and multi-sectoral surveillance data collection requiring trainees to collect data from at least two sectors simultaneously.

    The team from Malawi, standing from left to right: Mr Collings Chioko, Miss Maria Luwani, Dr Wamaka Musopople, Mrs Flora Tembo and Mr Happy Manda

    The FETP, a three-tier training approach comprising basic, intermediate, and advanced levels, is currently implemented at the basic and intermediate levels in Malawi, targeting animal and human health practitioners. This recent TOT workshop is a significant step towards a more unified and effective approach to public health surveillance and response across Southern Africa.